Presidential administration: Russia not to ignore Crimea’s request for assistance

MOSCOW, March 01, 14:07 /ITAR-TASS/. The Russian presidential administration said Saturday Moscow would “not leave unattended” the Crimean prime minister’s request for aid in providing peace and order in the autonomous Ukrainian republic.

Earlier Saturday, Sergei Aksyonov, the chairman of Crimea’s Council of Ministers, addressed Russian President Vladimir Putin with a request “to provide assistance in ensuring peace and calm on the territory of the autonomous republic of Crimea.”

Lawmakers from the Crimean Supreme Council, the republic’s parliament, elected Aksyonov chairman of Crimea’s Council of Ministers on February 27, dismissing Anatoly Mogilyov from the post.

Ukraine’s legitimate president, Viktor Yanukovich, has been ousted in a violent uprising. The Ukrainian parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, took over and appointed an interim head of state and approved a new government. But Yanukovich told journalists in southern Russia on Friday that he still remained the legitimate leader of Ukraine.